Rosa Parks, MLK Jr., Jesus

 So what is a hero anyway? I mean, they wear capes, tight clothes, and have superpowers, right? What if I told you that not all heroes wear capes? What if they didn’t need to save the world or fly up into a tree to save a cat (I think that’s firefighters, but you get the idea)? Not just anyone can obtain the title of a hero. If you think you’ve got what it takes to be labeled as a hero you MUST have these specific qualities: never-ending passion and determination, along with, earth-shattering courage.

  Have you ever been inches away from your dream and failed? Dr. Seuss --the most popular and successful children's author in history-- (who showed impenetrable determination)-- sure did. When he wrote his first book, And To think that on Mulberry Street, it got rejected by 27 different publishers. Imagine failing your final exam, or missing the game winning shot ,twenty...seven...times. Now Dr. Seuss won multiple Grammys and achieved the title of the greatest children’s author ever. If he had stopped after one publisher, two publishers...three...four, think about how that would affect the children of that generation. Dr. Seuss believed in himself and showed endless passion, drowning the doubters with determination and passion because he knew what he was capable of. One of his famous quotes portrays this very well: “Why fit in when you were born to stand out?’’ Dr. Seuss knew he was born to be something special.

The next example is Martin Luther King Jr. (of course). MLK Jr. was constantly mocked and ridiculed when he was trying to protest peacefully for equal rights. Dr. King even received death threats for him and his family. He shunned the skeptics and carried on with his ‘I Have A Dream’ speech. He says, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” He was so determined and passionate about his dream--not just to benefit himself-- but others in the future generation. He was so determined and passionate that not even death stopped him. His message still inspires people to this day to strive for what is right. Both of these generation-changing men showed undeniable courage and impenetrable passion.

In addition, a hero has to have dauntless courage. Two heroes demonstrate what this looks like very well: Rosa Parks and Jesus. On December 1st, 1955, Rosa Parks was heading home from a long day of work at a department store in Montgomery on the public bus. She sat down in the designated seat for “colored” people. As the bus went on, it picked up more passengers --mostly white ones-- and became jam-packed. The bus driver noticed the bus overflowing and commanded Rosa to sacrifice her seat to the white passengers. Rosa refused to do this as she rightfully believed that they had already set an assigned seat, as if she was in school, and they were trying to take even more rights from her. She replied with a sassy, but respectful, “I don’t think I should have to stand up.” She knew the backlash she was going to get, maybe even death threats much like her inspiration, Dr. King endured. She ended up getting arrested for denying the so-called “rulers” of that generation. This courage is absolutely astonishing. She later on stated,” I didn’t stand up because I was physically tired, but tired of giving in.” She courageously stood up for what was right, even though she could have accepted the situation and gone home to relax after a long day of work. Having the courage of a lion, she roared courageously by simply staying in her seat. This is not the only unbelievable act of courage. Jesus was asked to do the unthinkable when his own father asked him to die on the cross for a bunch of low-life sinners. But not just any death -- a gruesome, gory, torturous, and dreadful crucifiction. Jesus was mocked, ridiculed, spat on, traumatized by the people he was being tortured to save. Even through all this, he asked God to forgive his abusers. This courage is the best example I could ever comprehend. To die for people that will respect and adore you, but also for people that will mock and despise you. The worst part is that he knew this was going to happen! He could already envision the horrid things he was going to be called to and the torture he was going to receive. This truly is courage that will last forever.

In conclusion, to be a hero you need to possess passion and determination that is never-ending and impenetrable courage. All of these heroes achieved the right to be labeled as heroes because of these traits that they portrayed very well. These heroes inspired me to express courage and to not let anything get in my way of my dream. They inspired me to keep pushing through--especially when life gets hard. All of them may not have witnessed their dreams right in front of them, but it was accomplished because they showed the essential traits.